Falling Into Place
by UberLoopy
Summary: It's their sixth year. Lily and James, and all their classmates, are going through their life at Hogwarts like normal. Although they are unsure of what is next, one thing is for sure: everything is falling into place. T for language.
1. Chapter 1: The Letters

**Disclaimer and Authors Note:** Still don't own Harry Potter. I haven't written one of these since I was 15, but here I am, six years later. It's garbage, like always, sticking on brand. If you're a raccoon follow my equally garbage tumblr: headquartersofanobsessionwithhp.

 **Chapter 1: The Letters**

We start the story with when Lily was assessing her hair. At this point in time, she was still undecided as to if she liked it or not. She ran her hands through her hair. It reached just past her shoulders. The last time it was this length, she was approximately eleven. She would have liked to have kept her long locks, but her sister had thrown a piece of chewing gum in it last week. This incident resulted in a screaming match, followed by a hair cut.

Lily arrived at the train station, got to Platform 9 and 3/4, and met up with her friends. They gawked over her hair when Marlene accidentally let slip that —

"James stole the photo you sent so I didn't get a good look, really."

Lily gasped, "He _stole_ it? What a creep!" Lily was repulsed, but a little flattered.

"He said he wanted to study how it didn't move but I don't buy it for a second."

The three girls: Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas, caught up on their summers. Marlene spent two weeks coaching at a quidditch camp with Potter. Lily figured this was where he stole the photo of her hair cut she had sent to Marlene in confidence. Dorcas spent the summer bartending at a muggle bar near her house. Her mother had urged her to get a job to pay for her school books. While working, Dorcas perfected her nonverbal confundus charm to get extra tips. Lily had spent the summer with her mother. She had received an unfortunate diagnosis from their doctor, and Lily wanted to appreciate every moment she could with her.

Lily was spared from having to talk about it. The door to their compartment opened. The Marauders, the boys from the Gryffindor house in their year, welcomed themselves in. Sirius and James sandwiched Lily between them, and Peter sat beside Dorcas. Remus remained standing to ensure their stay did not last too long.

The seven of them began talking. They immediately discussed events of the summer and the homework assignments. The volume level of the compartment increased exponentially in a short amount of time.

"Slughorn's essay was interesting. I'm assuming we're going to begin this year with amortentia. He usually does that," Lily said loudly, trying to talk over all the other voices.

"I haven't finishes McGonagall's yet," Peter said. He was nervous about it. "I hope we don't have her first, I need more time-"

"We'll help you, Little Peter," Sirius assured him.

Lily felt James tap her knee and she turned to him.

"Did you get my letters?" he asked, almost as nervous as Peter.

Lily gave a small grin and nodded.

"You didn't respond to any of them."

"I know." Lily's grin grew to a smirk.

James had sent her many letters throughout the break, starting from the first week. Each one made her roll her eyes when she received it, then smile as she read it. Her mother would ask her what was making her smile so much, so Lily began reading them to her. Toward the end of the summer, Lily and her mother both began looking forward to James's recountments of he and Sirius's mischief.

"I wasn't sure you were getting them is all," James explained to her. "With the rumors of owls getting intercepted..." his voice trailed off.

"I enjoyed them," Lily said softy. The confidence and pride returned to James's eyes, so she added, "And so did my mother."

His face flushed pink. Lily's considered her goal reached.

James stood up immediately, saying, "alright boys, visiting hours are over."

James crossed the compartment in two steps. He pushed Remus out of the way in an attempt to exit the compartment immediately. The other boys followed his lead.

Before leaving, Sirius turned to Lily and asked, "See you for our walk in the morning?"

Lily's face broke into a large smile and she looked up at Sirius, "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Sirius left the girls with a wink.

The second the door closed, Marlene and Dorcas turned to Lily. They had identical looks of curiosity, dying to burst through every orifice. It was written all over their faces. Holding in their questions was hurting them, and Lily knew it. She nodded once, giving them the sign, and they erupted like a volcano of excitement.

"What did you say to James?"

"The look on his face—"

"Priceless!"

"Never seen that before—"

"I worship the ground you walk on!"

Dorcas fell to the floor and began bowing at Lily's feet. Lily threw her head back in laughter. When she looked back, Marlene had joined Dorcas in bowing.

"Stop it! Both of you!" Lily pleaded.

She had stitches in her side from laughing so hard. A first year walked by the compartment, confusion written on their face. Dorcas and Marlene returned to their seats. Marlene wiped her knees off. All three of them were out of breath. They allowed the adrenaline to settle before-

"But seriously, Lily," Dorcas began.

"What did you tell Potter-" Marlene continued.

"To make him blush like that?" The two of them ended the question together in a shriek.

Lily sighed dramatically, with the purpose of dragging it on, "He sent me letters over break—"

"Oh!" Dorcas emphasized sarcastically.

"How _scandalous,"_ Marlene added with a giggle.

The three girls were just about vibrating with excitement. Lily couldn't wait to tell the girls what she said, and the girls couldn't wait to hear. Unfortunate for them, Lily enjoyed the dramatics of it all. And so, she dragged it on. She recounted the entire story. She included unnecessary detail, as Marlene and Dorcas added their own commentary. It took an entire 25 minutes for Lily bring them to the point on the train.

"… and so I said, to deflate that giant head of his, 'my mother enjoyed them as well'."

Dorcas and Marlene screamed. Marlene even stood from her seat for a moment. They settled down into yet another fit of giggles.

"Did you actually read them do your mother, tho?" Dorcas asked.

"Of course!" Lily said, "They always cheered her up after a doctors appointment."

Marlene asked the billion dollar question, "What did they say?"

Lily looked to Marlene. She looked to Dorcas. She then looked to the luggage rack, where her purse sat with the letters inside them. She stood up, reached up, and tugged her purse down. It fell into her arms. She looks to the girls with a smile. They were eager. They knew what was in the bag before she said it. Lily shoved her entire forearm into the purse and pulled out a stack of parchment.

"Would you like to read them?"

"Yes!" Marlene screamed and she grabbed the letters from Lily's hand.

Marlene handed half of them to Dorcas. They spent the rest of the train ride devouring every word that had been written. Dorcas insisted there was a secret meaning hidden between the lines, and tried to decode it. Her theories got more and more absurd as the train ride went on. Lily maybe forgot to mention that there was another letter. The first one that James had sent, that wasn't with the rest of them. Lily had decided to leave that one at home, because she felt as though it was too personal. Something she didn't want the girls, or her mother, to read. It was tucked safely under mattress.

After reading every letter twice, Dorcas asked, "So are you finally going to go out with him?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Lily said, her eyes mid-roll, "He's just in it for the chase."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Marlene warned, trading letters with Dorcas. "He was telling witches at the quidditch camp he was betrothed."

Lily let out one loud laugh, and was about to make fun of her choice of words, but Marlene spoke before she could.

"His word, not mine."

"I think it's sweet," Dorcas defended him.

"We'll see if he's matured at all this year. Then, we can come back to the topic," was as close to a compromise as Lily was willing to offer.

It seemed, however, that James's maturity was a pipe dream. At the feast, just an hour later, Lily noticed James and Sirius whispering with their heads together. Of course, she assumed conspiring something, and that something was immature. Although the feast had began and there was plenty of food for them to eat, their plates were still empty. They were the only ones in the entire great hall who weren't eating. Lily pointed this out to Marlene, who just rolled her eyes at Lily in response. Lily turned back to her food, a pile of mashed potatoes, when just then her forehead was accosted by a dinner roll. Lily looked in the direction it came from, and it was Sirius Black. Lily heard Dorcas mutter, "if looks could kill."

Sirius waved to Lily then said, "Prongs likes your haircut." He pointed to a blushing James, who was scooping himself a mountain of food.

Lily smirked.

"Tell prongs I appreciate it."

"Of course, love!" And Sirius turned back to James to share the good news.


	2. Chapter 2: Penpalmanship

**A/N: Still garbage lol. Thanks for following tho. I uploat new chapters every wednesday/thursday**

 **Chapter 2: Penpalmanship**

James and Sirius were sitting in the common room. They were still quiet, due to it being early morning. They were already dressed in their robes and ready for their classes to start. However, there were still three hours until classes started. They heard footsteps, and looked from where the sound was coming from. It was Lily. The love of James's life. He smiled. The three of them walked down to the lake, quiet. They didn't want to attract attention or disturb any of the paintings.

Since their first year at Hogwarts, James and Sirius had been on a mission to capture the giant squid. Every year since their first year, they have failed. It had been a disappointing realization to them that they only had a couple more chances left. This is their sixth year, meaning next year will be their last chance. They had to make it count.

Lily had ran into them first year on their adventure. She had been trying to get to her classes early. When James and Sirius ran into her in the hallway, they invited her down, and she watched. She had joined them every year on their mission since. It had become their tradition.

As they approached the lake, Lily spoke the usual question, "What's the plan this year, boys?"

Sirius began removing his shoes and explained their plan to her.

"We were thinking we came closest fourth year, when we swan out to try and catch him."

"But there were two of us swimming, so the squid got distracted," James continued with the explanation. He was leaning on his broomstick. That was the vital utensil in this plan.

"It's just going to be me swimming out. Prongs will fly over head, make sure I don't drown."

"I'll stun him when he shows himself."

Lily was smiling. James could tell she didn't think the plan would work. If James was being honest, he didn't think the plan would work either. But he was a man of tradition. James hoped one day that he would have children who would carry on the tradition of swimming out to try to capture the giant squid.

"Sounds like it might work this year," Lily said with a smile.

Sirius was down to his boxers now and began wading in the water. His skin was already turning purpled from the temperature. James and Lily watched from the shore, quiet. James realized, if it hadn't been for a naked Sirius, this would be quite romantic. Sirius looked back at the two of them and gave a thumbs up. It wasn't reassuring, but they both returned the gesture. Finally, Sirius dipped under water, and Lily spoke.

"This was a terrible idea," is all she said.

James laughed, "it always is."

He mounted his broom, and took off, to make sure that Sirius didn't die on the first day back to classes.

Two hours later, they were tracking mud through the entrance hall. Lily was cleaning up after them to avoid Filch, the caretaker. She wanted to avoid detention on the first day back. Once they reached the Great hall, Lily abandoned the boys for breakfast with the girls. James and Sirius approached Remus and Peter. They were just as disappointed to hear that once again, their plan to capture the giant squid failed. Remus was eating eggs on toast, and Peter was nervously scribbling on a piece of parchment.

"What his problem?" Sirius asked.

Sirius sat down across from Remus and helped himself to toast. James sat beside Sirius. James looked over at what Peter was doing. It was his unfinished transfiguration homework from summer break. The one Sirius had said they'd help him with. That's when James realized.

"We have transfiguration first, don't we?"

Remus slid their schedules across the table at them. Sirius and James picked them up. Their first class of the year was going to be transfiguration. James, who excelled at transfiguration, did not mind this. But he did pity his friend Peter, who did not excel.

"We've still got forty five minutes, Peter," James offered. Sirius looked at James, skeptical, "Let's go to the library and I'll help you out."

Peter gathered his parchment and quill without saying a word. James grabbed the forgotten ink bottle. They walked toward the library. Although James was disappointed he wouldn't get to eat breakfast, helping out his friend was the better way to spend his morning.

They sat at a table near the entrance of the library. Madame Pince, the librarian, was suspicious of them, and wouldn't let them go further. James said once, when he was in his first year, that he'd rather be caught dead, than studying in the library. The librarian never forgave him for that. This, combined with the fact that they hadn't even been to class yet, resulted in the librarian being suspicious of them.

As James assisted Peter, he got to thinking about what Lily had said on the train. She had said her mother enjoyed the letters he had sent her. Just the thought of it made him blush and fidget. He had sent those to Lily, for her to see, and nobody else. He needed to do something about it. And so, he pulled out a piece of parchment and his quill, and began to write.

 _Dear Mrs. Evans,_

 _Lily has informed me that she shared with you the letters I wrote to her over the summer. On behalf of my younger self, I would like to apologize for things I may have said. I am a more mature man now, and I hope that the crimes of my youth do not influence your current opinion of me. I hope you're feeling well._

 _Sincerely,  
_ _James E. Potter._

James stood up suddenly. This startled Peter, and nearly caused him to spill ink all over his essay.

"I'm going to the owelry."

"Class starts in two minutes."

"Cover for me?"

Peter nodded, "Marauders honor."

James headed for the owelry. He would have made it to class on time if he hadn't been stopped by Remus and Sirius. They had informed him of what he had already known, that he was going in the wrong direction for class. When he informed them of where he was going instead, Sirius said he was going to go with him.

"You're going to be late for class!" Remus shouted after them.

"Cover for us!" Sirius had called back.

They heard him mutter what maybe sounded like, "Marauders honor," with a, "my ass," tagged to the end of it.

Up in the owelry, James took his time. He needed to decide on the prettiest owl to use to send this Very Important Letter. To his dismay, his own personal owl was already sent home with a list of things he and Sirius had forgotten. He hoped that one of the school owls would be satisfactory.

"I hoped I don't choose one that gets lost," James thought out loud. He was nervous, and had let it show.

"What is this letter about? Did you forget your underpants?" Sirius taunted. He pet a brown owl that was missing half it's feathers.

"No… it's to Lily's mother."

"Why are you writing to Lily's mother?" Sirius's tone was accusatory.

Even if James would try to explain... His tongue would get tied. And once he found the words, Sirius wouldn't be interested anymore. He would have found a different subject to talk about anyways. Sirius just didn't understand, he never had. Since first year, Sirius agreed that Lily was pretty. (Which got him a punch to the face) (Which got James a detention) But Sirius didn't trust the company she kept. James was willing to look past that.

"Lily read the letters I wrote to her to her mother," James said as he tied the letter to a chocolate brown bird. "I'm apologizing for anything that maybe offended her."

Sirius was still skeptical. James knew this. Thankfully, Sirius dropped the subject. James let the owl free, then he and Sirius finally headed to class.

"You're late." Was the first thing McGonagall said to them when they walked in.

They took their usual seats with Remus and Peter.

"I would take points from Gryffindor, but seeing as there are no points to take…"

"Sorry professor," the boys said together.

They learned long ago that excuses mean nothing to McGonagall. Especially when they were as lame as 'I was sending a letter'.

"Now that the whole class is here," McGonagall addressed everybody. "I will collect your essays-" Peter whimpered, "Mr. Pettigrew, why is your ink still wet?"

Peter attempted to stutter out an answer, but McGonagall cut him off. She would rather not know.

And so, the first week back to school proceeded. As sixth years, things were the same, but they felt different. There was an air that things were different this year. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter attended all their classes and enjoyed delicious meals together. At night, they all helped Peter with homework. The package from James's parents arrived. It included all the items they had sent to James's mother, as well as 2 history of magic books. Just in time to write an essay. The year was off to a great start.

Saturday morning, James had been surprised to receive an owl. He had been lying in bed when he heard an incessant pecking at the window. The chocolate brown owl he had sent to Mrs. Evans flew in and rested on the edge of Peter's bed. Lucky for Peter, he slept like a rock and heard nothing.

James untied the letter that was tied to the foot of the owl. It was written on a thin white paper, rather than the thick parchment James was used to. His name was written in a shaky cursive on the outside of the letter. He opened it. The bird flew back out the window and James sat down and read:

 _Dear James,_

 _It was lovely to hear from you again. I had grown to look forward to your letters over the summer. You truly have a way with words._

 _I am glad to hear you have matured so much in so little time. Maybe I'll finally be able to see Lily admit you aren't as bad as she and Severus once insisted._

 _Due to my sickness, I must end this letter now. Don't be a stranger._

James read the letter twice. He then tucked it under his pillow and went down to the common room, still in his pajamas. He saw Sirius and Remus huddled over the weekend edition of the daily prophet. They were working on the crossword puzzle together. James sat down in a chair across from them and said nothing about the letter to either of them.


	3. Chapter 3: Cooking Lessons

A/N: This chapter is based off of one of my head cannons. Enjoy the pain once you realize. Don't be afraid to let me know what you think about it.

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Cooking Lessons**

Lily received a letter on Tuesday. She had been back at school for just two weeks, and she was finally starting to fall into a routine. It was in the morning, before breakfast, when she read it for the first time. She regretted it instantly, even though she had no choice but to receive it. Her father had written to her, and explained to her that her mother's illness was getting worse. They would be lucky if she survived until Christmas. Lily's heart sank, and she was in a hazy lull all day. That's when Dorcas and Marlene decided to take her down to Hagrid's, for a pick-me-up.

That's how Lily found herself with Dorcas and Marlene in the kitchen of Hargrid's hut. They watched, fearful, as he attempted to, "whip summit up for yeh". That would have been a nice thing to do, but Hagrid didn't have the greatest reputation for cooking. The three girls knew this first hand; they had fallen victim to his kitchen endeavors more than once. They watched Hagrid sprinkle and unknown seasoning on an unknown dish. Dorcas gasped and reached out for Lily and Marlene's hands. They were all nervous about what was about to be served to them. They squeezed each other's hands and watched with bated breath.

When Hagrid turned around, he was smiling wide. The three girls, gasped. Not out of disgust for the dish (yet), but due to his beard being on fire. Hagrid was confused for a moment until-

"Your beard!" Lily finally exclaimed, pointing to the growing fire on his face.

Hagrid threw the pot onto the table. He needed to use his hands to put out the flames. The dish of what Lily thought was maybe supposed to be pasta spilt over on the table. A terrible stench wafted up their noses. Marlene gagged.

"Girls, I'm sorry," Hagrid apologized, "I've been practicing, but…"

Lily stood up and pulled out her wand, "No need to apologize, Hagrid. Practice makes perfect. Just keep on trying."

Hagrid looked as though Lily's kind word would reduce him to tears. The girls, meanwhile, looked betrayed. Lily held out her wand, gave it a wave, and the spilt pasta went back into the pot. Hagrid placed three empty plates in front of the girls and scooped them each a serving. They all tried it.

It only took one taste of the pasta for Lily to appreciate Dorcas's knack for nonverbal spells. After the first bite, Dorcas gave them the sign to let them know that she would take care of the rest. And by 'she', it was her vanishing spell.

Later that night, the girls sat in a circle on their dormitory floor. They were eating Marlene's stash of Cauldron Cakes, when Lily had a wild idea. (An unknown fact: Cauldron Cakes are brain food).

This idea she had would help keep her mind off her mother. Her mother's illness had been in the back of her head all day. She had no control over it because she was so far away from her family at Hogwarts. She knew this, but that didn't keep her from thinking about it all day.

Her amazing idea would also help someone she cares about. It was the perfect solution to not only her problem, but also Hagrid's.

"What if I give him cooking lessons?" She asked out loud.

Dorcas giggled. "James would think that's hot!" It was the sugar from the Cauldron Cakes talking. Marlene kicked Dorcas in the side. Dorcas giggled again, "owe."

"Hagrid's hopeless, Lily," Marlene let out a belch, then realized, "You can't even cook. It'd be double hopeless."

"No, I can!" Lily said, trying to convince herself. "I make a really good fruit cake."

"Fruit cake?" Marlene and Dorcas were both unimpressed by the thought of this.

"It's a start!" Lily insisted.

And like that, Lily dedicated an entire Sunday to teaching Hagrid to make fruit cake. It was the one recipe Lily knew. She had informed the girls, as well as the Marauders, that they were expected at Hagrid's at 4:30 Sunday afternoon. She also told them to come hungry. Somehow, they all agreed.

"It's like brewing potions," Lily explained to Hagrid as she mixed the ingredients together. She felt as though demonstrating first would be the best way to go about teaching him.

"I've never been great at potions," Hagrid sulked.

Lily chose to ignore him.

At 4:30 on the button, there was a knock on the door. Lily let her classmates in. They all considered Hagrid to be a friend, so they all had their favorite seats to sit in when they came to visit. Hagrid, who was on his fourth batch of fruitcake, called for Lily from the other room. Lily rushed into the kitchen, hoping for the best. She prayed to the entities that be that this round wasn't as rock-hard as all the others.

"Lily, they're just as bad as the last batch," Hagrid's confidence was completely shaken.

Lily knew that he needed to get his act together. If not, he wouldn't even consider sharing the fruitcake with anyone. Lily did the first thing that came to mind and followed the example of one of her professors; Lily had witnessed McGonagall put confidence back into students with a quick, stern lecture on many occasions.

"Stop it Hagrid!" Lily demanded, doing the best imitation of McGonagall she could. She held up a finger and waved it as she spoke. "I have already seen you improve tenfold. You are going to plate this fruitcake, and you are going to serve it to your guests! They're waiting."

And like that, Lily left the kitchen for Hagrid to recompose himself. She entered the other room and sat herself between Remus and Dorcas. They awaited Hagrid's grand reveal, some more nervous than others. James and Marlene casually discussed quidditch plays. Sirius disagreed with most of what they were saying; he was still bitter that he wasn't allowed to play this year.

Finally, Hagrid entered with a tray. He placed it on the table, beaming. He was proud. So was Lily.

"They aren't as good as Lily's, but… Help yeh'selves."

Lily was the first to grab one. Then Remus. Then James. Soon, they all had a rock solid fruit cake in their hands.

"How do yeh like 'em?"

"They're delicious, Hagrid." Lily insisted.

Once again, Lily had been thankful for Dorcas's vanishing spell.

They returned to the Gryffindor Tower that night, and sat in the common room. They gathered around the fire, and looked at each other awkwardly. They had lost Peter on the way, because he had lost a tooth in a cake and had to go to Madam Pomfry. James gave Lily a pat on the shoulder.

"It was a nice idea," he said.

She sighed. Her plan had failed. She would now have to face reality. Unless…

"Maybe next week-" she began.

"No, Lily," Dorcas said, cutting Lily off from the idea of trying to give Hagrid more cooking lessons.

"We aren't ever going to allow you do try to do that to us again," Marlene said.

Lily looked to Sirius, who was avoiding eye contact with her. Then to James, who was admiring his shoes. She looked at Remus, who sighed.

"It's for our own safety," Remus said. He sat down in an arm chair and closed his eyes. He would be asleep in thirty seconds.

"Guys!" Lily exclaimed, looking around at all her so-called friends. "This is for Hagrid! Not me!"

"Lily, we love Hagrid, we do, but…" James started.

"We just don't like when he cooks for us," Sirius finished for him.

Marlene's stomach growled and she fell to the floor dramatically, clutching her abdomen. She groaned, "I'm dying. We ate all my Cauldron cakes earlier this week. Now I've got nothing to provide nutrients to my body."

"Stop it, Marlene!" Lily exclaimed at the theatrics.

"We can get you food," Sirius offered.

Marlene gasped, eager. Dorcas smiled, as though she had just fallen in love. Lily narrowed her eyes at Sirius. She was suspicious.

"Where?" She asked him.

"The—"

James elbowed Sirius in the gut. Sirius groaned and fell dramatically, mimicking Marlene's style. He smiled at her when he fell beside her, "What's your favorite?"

"Chicken wings," Marlene said dreamily, her eyes wide with hope.

Dorcas moaned in agreement.

The thought of chicken wings danced through Lily's mind. Her stomach growled. Sirius interpreted this as Lily's approval.

Sirius smiled, "You got it."

He stood up and grabbed James by the arm. The two of them left the common room with their mission in mind. Lily turned to Remus, who was sitting in an arm chair, his eyes closed. His breathing was steady.

"Remus, where are they going?" Lily interrupted his adventures to dream land.

Remus opened opened one eye at her. He shrugged, then closed his eye again.

"Remus! You're a prefect! Keep them in line," Lily reprimanded him.

"I heard nothing," he said, with a smirk. "Marauders honor."

Initially, Lily had been annoyed. But she was over it as soon as James and Sirius returned with chicken wings. Peter had returned shortly after James and Sirius, with a healed tooth. They sat around the fire, eating and laughing. Lily soon decided that her irritation had just been due to her hunger. That night, they were the last to leave the common room. The next morning, they paid for it when all seven of them had been late to their Transfiguration class.


	4. Chapter 4: Rebirth of the Map

**A/N: sry its a little late internet was down, plus im mourning my country**

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 **Chapter 4: The rebirth of the map**

James and Sirius had plans for the day. They were going to sneak off to Hogsmeade, through the honey dukes passage, and buy new quills. After that, they were going to pick up a book for Peter. He had misplaced his Potions book and was borrowing Remus's for the time being. Once they ran their errands, they were going to stop by and visit Rosmerta for a little while.

Their plans were ruined before they started. Remus told them, at breakfast, over a meal of jam on toast, that today was cleaning day. James and Sirius tried to get out of it. They, begged, pleaded, and shed crocodile tears; but Remus wouldn't budge. The rule was that they stayed in the room until everyone completed cleaning. This was going to make for a long day for James and Sirius.

It was a common occurrence for the Marauders to be in their dorm room at the same time. They, unlike others at the school (or so they heard) got along with each other. They would gather in their dorm to do homework, or plan mischief. Because they spent so much time in their room, the boys tried to keep their dorm room tidy.

One weekend every month, Remus would force them to sacrifice their Saturday to ensure neat living. James, who knew this routine, had already hid his unmentionables in the false bottom of his trunk. And by "unmentionables", it was only just his letters from Lily's mother. They had formed some sort of friendship through the letters. He still hadn't told anyone that he had continued the exchange after that first letter. The only times he felt guilty about it were when he remembered that Marauders promised to tell each other everything. He was remembered of this often.

Today, James had finished his cleaning first. He and Sirius always raced to see who would be the first to finish. It had been a tradition. Last year, Sirius had won 6-3. This year, James was determined to win it all, and he was off to a good start.

James lay on his freshly made bed, silent. He was waiting patiently for Peter to finish. Sirius, who had also finished his cleaning, was spread out on his own bed, reading the daily prophet. He tutted at an article and shook his head. Remus had also finished cleaning his own area, but was now helping Peter. Peter dumped the entire contents of his trunk on his bed and was once again attempting to organize his life.

"Why do you still have _Standard Book of Spells Year 1_?" Remus asked.

James looked over to see Remus holding up the tattered book.

"There are still a few spells I haven't gotten the hang of…" Peter reached up for the book, but Remus pulled away, above his head. It was out of Peter's reach.

James watched as Remus used his height to his advantage. Pieces of parchment were hanging out of the frayed pages. Homework assignments that were never handed in and old notes passed between the four of them. James was curious as to what they would have passed notes about when they were 11. It seems like ions ago.

"You're telling me," Remus's voice was low and steady. He spoke with a mix of anger and disbelief. "A sixteen year old wizard, who has achieved becoming an animagus, can't levitate a damn feather?"

Remus threw the book on the ground, resulting in a loud snap as it hit the hardwood. Peter jumped from the noise, cowering under Remus's glare. The book slid across the floor and under James's bed. Pieces of parchment flew out. Sirius, who had closed the newspaper at the sound of the book being thrown, stood up.

"Hey!" Sirius exclaimed at Remus, "Apologize to Wormtail."

Remus did as he was told, his tail between his legs. James summoned the book and the pieces of parchment from under his bed. He was going to return them to Peter when something caught his eye. He held up a piece of parchment with a drawing on it, smiling. He showed it to Sirius.

"It's the map we made Peter first year… when he kept getting lost," James said with nostalgia in his voice.

Sirius looked up at it, squinting. His face broke into a smile and he took it from James's hands. It was a rough sketch of the Great Hall in relation to the Gryffindor Tower. Boxes drawn to represent the classrooms they used their first year at Hogwarts. Looking at it now, James had aquired so much more information about Hogwarts since they made the map; back then, he thought he had known everything. Sirius pointed to an empty spot on the map.

"The kitchens would be right here," he said.

"Slytherin common room over here," James said, pointing to a spot in the dungeons. His finger rested near a box that was labeled ' _potions class' - wendesday morning_.

"Hufflepuff common room."

Sirius moved his finger over just a little bit from where it previously pointed to the kitchens. The Huflepuff common room was near the kitchens.

"Nobody needs that on a map," James said.

The two boys laughed.

"Get me a quill," Sirius requested.

James discarded Peter's book on his bed. He retrieved a quill from the drawer of his nightstand. Sirius spread out the parchment on the floor; the only flat surface large enough and hard enough. James got on the floor beside Sirius and they started working together. They drew all the classrooms, the North Tower, and even added the Whomping Willow to the drawing.

By the time Peter and Remus had completed organizing Peter's belonging's, James and Sirius had completed most of the map. There were just a few blank spaces, where they couldn't remember what was in a certain location.

"Where's the Ravenclaw common room?" James asked when he realized it was missing.

"No clue. Maybe it's on this seventh floor spot. I swear I saw something there—"

"No, Padfoot. That's just a wall."

"Prongs, I am going to prove you wrong," Sirius said with determination in his voice.

James gave Sirius a shove.

"I'll take my invisibility cloak to find out where the Ravenclaw common rooms are. You go to this seventh floor _nothingness_ to confirm that it is in fact nothing. Peter can investigate over here, and Remus here. Sound like a plan?"

And so, the Marauder's Map was born.

That night, Sirius went off to the seventh floor to investigate. Peter inspected halls near the library. He was able to confirm their suspicions that the Staff Dormitories were on the other side of it. Meanwhile, Remus was instructed to go to the Astronomy Tower. He marked down where _that door you know the one_ leads to. James was successful in following a group of Ravenclaws to their common room. He was also mildly disturbed by the argument that was instigated between them after a statue asked them a question.

Peter, Remus, and James gathered back in the Gryffindor Common room to finish the drawing of the map. Sirius hadn't made it back yet. James was nervous about this. Did he run into trouble?

"He's probably trying to find the thing that he _thought_ he saw," James tried to convince himself. He looked from the door, back to the map.

"Maybe he got stuck in a staircase," Peter offered. James looked at him, aghast. Sirius would never allow that to happen to himself. "Happens to me all the time…" Peter defended himself.

"He'll be back," Remus assured, "In the mean time, we can add what we found. How do you get into the Ravenclaw Common Room, Prongs?"

James shrugged, "I'm not sure. I didn't see it open, the students were fighting."

"What were they fighting about?" Peter asked, always nosy.

"The answer to a riddle that a statue asked."

"What was the riddle?" Remus was genuinely curious.

"I don't remember."

Remus rolled his eyes, "It would be useful to have that information on the map. That way if we ever needed—"

"Why would we need to get into the Ravenclaw common room?" Peter asked.

"I'm just saying," Remus said, blushing.

James gasped, "Are you crushing on a Ravenclaw?"

"No."

"You are, aren't you?" Peter poked Remus's cheek.

"I'm done with this conversation."

Remus crossed his arms and closed his eyes. His head lolled back and he fell asleep.

"Who do you think it is?" James conspired with Peter.

"That fifth year Prefect, definitely."

James agreed, and the two got back to work on the map. They were still waiting for Sirius to return with his tidbit of information. James was beginning to worry again about if he ran into trouble. Maybe some Slytherins were trying to pick a fight. He shook the thought from his head. They wouldn't do that, it was unfair to pick on somebody when they were alone.

But when were Slytherin's fair?


	5. Chapter 5: Slug Club

**A/N: I'm going to try to get a second chapter up this week, but promises were made to be broken, xox gossip girl**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Slug Club**

Lily stared in her mirror. She was going on 20 minutes at this point, and should just suck it up and go. _But she didn't want to_.

It was the first Slug Club meeting of the year. The Slug Club was an elite group of students hand picked by one of the professors. She was due to be there in two minutes. But yet, Lily stood in front of her mirror. Her head was spinning with a rumor she had heard from the Head Girl, a sweet Ravenclaw who was also in the slug club. Supposedly, Severus Snape, her ex-best friend, would be attending this meeting.

Lily combed her fingers through her hair one last time. She felt a lump in her stomach, knowing she was going to be spending two hours in the same room as Snape. All the childhood memories they shared couldn't make up for him deciding that her life was worth nothing to him. He had decided that keeping company with Death Eaters was better for himself.

By the time time she arrived to the dungeons, she was the last of the Slug Club to arrive. She had expected this due to being 43 minutes late. The only available seat available was to the immediate left of Professor Slughorn. She assumed he saved with her in mind. When she entered the room, he stood, elated.

"Lily, so glad you could join us. Was getting worried you may not make it," he pulled out her chair for her, "Everybody, this is Lily Evans. Gryffindor. Prefect. Top of her class. Oldest member of the Slug Club, if I'm correct, she's been a member since her third year. You all could learn a thing or two from her."

A few of the other students rolled their eyes. Lily tried to smile through her embarrassment. _Think of the homework deadline extension,_ she thought to herself. Lily gave a polite wave to the other students. Two of them she didn't know, one of them she recognized as Sirius's younger brother, and one of them was Snape. There were three others who she recognized from previous meetings. Lily caught Snape's eye for a moment from across the table, and she was quick to look away.

"Lily, we were just discussing career goals. What are you thinking of doing after school?" Slughorn asked.

The truth was, there were a lot of bad things going on in the world. There was only one thing Lily wanted to do. She wanted to help protect innocent muggles and muggleborns. The media was making an attempt to keep murders quiet. In the Gryffindor Tower they discussed it among themselves often. When Professor McGonagall asked them what they wanted to do after school, they all told her the same thing. "We want to fight You-Know-Who." McGonagall had formed a meeting with them and gave them a stern talk. She advised them to focus on their schooling.

Instead of saying all this to Slughorn, who always got awkward when it came to politics, Lily said, "I'd like to become a healer."

Snape snorted from across the table. Lily's head snapped to his direction.

"That is very noble," Slughorn said. He shoot Snape a warning look as to not offend his favorite student. "Healing is tough work, Ms. Evans—" and then he went into a lengthy story about a student he once taught who went to become top healer in the country.

The meal was five courses. Lily once again found herself wishing she knew Dorcas's nonverbal vanishing spell. She whispered this to the head girl, beside her, who agreed with a giggle.

Lily was always the last to leave these meetings. She made sure of it for a couple reasons. The first was to thank Slughorn for his hospitality. The second, at least this time, was to ask for a deadline extension on her latest homework assignment. He gave it to her graciously, saying he understood how difficult it could be to be a sixth year. Lily was relieved. There was one thing off her shoulders.

When she left Slughorns office, there was a new thing to confront her. Or would it be an old thing?

Severus Snape.

He was waiting for her in the hallway. He had his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall across from the door to Slughorn's office. His hair fell into his eyes. Lily looked at him for half a moment, and decided the best way to deal with him was to pretend like he didn't exist. So she turned, and walked.

He pushed himself off the wall to follow. "Lily—"

She didn't bother to turn around when she spoke, "You've already said more than enough."

She turned a corner, then began climbing stairs. She knew this would be the quickest way to loose him. Slytherin's weren't as used to climbing as many stairs as Gryffindors.

"Lily, just head me out," Snape pleaded, "I have so much to offer you, please—"

She tried not to laugh. She didn't want him to know she was actually suffering through hearing the words he was saying. She could tell her was already beginning to get winded.

"Evans," A friendlier voice echoed down the hallway.

Lily stopped walking and turned to look left. She had never been so thankful to see Sirius Black before in her life. She stopped walking as he approached her.

"Isn't it past curfew?" She accused him.

"What's your excuse?" he countered.

"Slug Club."

Sirius saw Snape.

"Is he harassing you?"

Lily saw Sirius's hand slip into his robe, clutching his wand. Lily reached an arm out to stop him. She didn't want to cause a scene. Lily gave Snape one last look of disgust. He deserved a jelly legs jinx.

"I didn't even realize he was there."

She turned back to Sirius with a shrug. Sirius slung his arm around her shoulder. They walked back to Gryffindor Tower together. Sirius may or may not have hexed Snape to have a wedgie once they turned their backs to him. Lily may or may not have pretended she didn't notice.

When they got back to the Gryffindor Tower, they went their separate ways. Sirius had important 'Marauders Business' to tend to, and Lily was exhausted. She just wanted to sleep. She went up the stairs to her dormitory, where Dorcas and Marlene were laying in Marlene's bed. They were gossiping about a Hufflepuff girl. Lily threw herself onto her own bed and groaned.

"How was the meeting?" Dorcas giggled.

"Snape was there." Lily said, monotone.

Dorcas and Marlene got up from Marlene's bed and rushed to Lily's side. Dorcas ran a hand threw Lily's hair. Marlene took Lily's hand in her own. Lily was thankful to have such great friends.

"He's a git," said Dorcas.

"I'm not sure he'll be invited back, to be honest. Slughorn seemed unamused when he made fun of me when I said I wanted to be a healer."

Dorcas threw her head back and laughed, "You? A healer? You're way better than that."

"There's nothing shameful about that!" Marlene defended, "I wouldn't mind it. I've been thinking about talking to Madam Pomfrey. Asking if I could shadow her after the christmas holidays…"

"That's great, Marlene. I think you should," Lily encouraged with a smile. "But I wasn't going to tell Slughorn I was going to fight Voldemort. Especially with three Death Eaters in training sitting at the table. Not smart."

"You're so wise." Dorcas admired with a yawn. She stood up, "I'm going to bed. G'night, girls."

She walked over to her own bed and drew her curtains. Marlene looked to Lily, nervous. Lily squeezed her hand.

"I think you'd make a great Healer. Really." Lily said quietly, so Dorcas wouldn't hear.

"Thanks, Lily." Marlene said, "Sorry about Snape."

Lily shrugged, "Sirius saved me from him. He was wondering the hallways after curfew."

"He's such a rebel, that Black," Marlene said with an awkward laugh.

She avoided Lily's eye's. She went to stand up but Lily pulled her back down.

"Do you like him?"

"What? Me? _Black?_ No!"

"Not convincing, McKinnon." Lily said, then pushed Marlene off her bed with a laugh.

"Don't tell Dorcas, she'd kill me if I didn't tell her myself," Marlene pleaded from the floor.

"Your secret is safe with me,"Lily promised her.

Marlene thanked her and went to her own bed. Lily rolled over, and fell asleep in a moment, still in her robes. That night, she dreamt of being a healer. She was terrible at it. But Marlene, being her associate, always come in and saved their patient at the last minute.


	6. Chapter 6: Cures

**A/N: This chapter is GARBAGE. i HATE it. when i first met this chapter i said, "delete yourself!"**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Cures**

Saying it had been a rough night would have been putting it lightly.

Remus lay in his usual hospital bed in the infirmary, and this time around the other three boys had beds as well. Peter had gotten stepped on. His hand broken and his leg fractured. Sirius had gotten his shoulder dislocated and he had a scratch all down his back. He had to lay on his side until Madam Pomfry could heal it. James had a shattered knee, a gash in his side, and a broken nose, which gave him two black eyes. They were all a mess. Lucky for them, Madam Pomfry tried not to ask questions.

James had just awoken, the world still too bright, when he heard the door to the infirmary open. All he could feel was pain in his entire body. He heard Madam Pomfry sigh, exasperated.

"Ms. Evans, no visitors," Pomfry began.

"I was wondering if I could talk to you, actually," James heard Lily say.

She sounded nervous. James tried to peek through the curtains to get a look at her, but he wasn't wearing his glasses. He thought about reaching for them, but he was in too much pain. Plus, his entire face was swollen. They wouldn't fit on his fattened head anyways.

"What is it Ms. Evans? If it's about what Slughorn said, we can make a meeting— wait. You aren't pregnant are you?"

James made a fist at the thought. Who would she be—

"No, no," Lily said, "I'm not… It's my mother, Madam Pomfry. She's been ill for a while, and she seems to be getting worse."

James's heart sank. He and Mrs. Evans were still writing back and forth, but she rarely spoke about her illness. It was usually about Mr. Evans's garden, or her the drama on her favorite soap opera. It had been three months and she had only brought up her illness twice. She never even said she was getting sicker.

"I'm sorry to hear about that," Pomfry said.

"I've been searching the library whenever I can looking for a cure. All the books seem to say the same thing. I was hoping you'd be able to give me a different answer. Maybe we've made new magical advancements since the books were written…"

"I'm sorry, Ms. Evans. We keep the library stocked with the most up to date books. Potions, even some spells, don't always mix well with muggles. Strange, sometimes fatal, side effects may occur."

James's heart sank. He felt a lump form in his throat.

"I suppose I'll be going, then. Thank you."

James heard Lily leaving. He tried to sit up, but the pain was too much. He heard the door open and then close again. He tried to call out for her, but it was just a shout of strangled agony. Between the physical pain, and the sadness he felt for Mrs. Evans and Lily, he wasn't sure what the cry was for. His curtains were pulled aside and Madam Pomfry looked at him, stern.

"Whatever you boys did last night, don't you ever do it again," She warned him.

James disagreed with her. He laid back down in his bed.

Three days later, James able to leave the hospital wing. He was the last of three of them, and it was only because he maybe had to regrow most of an organ, as well as heal his knee cap. His knee was still stiff, and it hurt to breath sometimes.

He managed to get up to the Gryffindor Tower, even if it took a little longer than usual do to his new stiff knee cap. When he got to his dormitory, he looked at his dorm mates, and realized there was something going on. Tension was in the air. They were all on there separate beds, Peter was even trying to do homework.

Remus was the first to speak.

"You guys are never coming out again."

Sirius began yelling at Remus, listing loudly all the reasons as to why Remus was wrong. Remus yelled back, countering everything Sirius said with a Very Valid and Responsible Excuse. Peter looked at the both of them, back and forth, as though he couldn't decide which side to be on. James held his hand out to get them to quiet down.

"Boys…" he said, his voice steady. They didn't hear him and continued yelling. "BOYS!" He shouted it.

The shout silenced Sirius and Remus. They looked at James.

"Remus, don't be stupid."

Sirius let out one loud laugh in Remus's face. He threw himself back onto his bed, celebrating his win. Remus was mad. Fuming. He paced a few times and James gathered the words to say. He needed to be careful and strategic about this. James held up his hand, warning the other boys not to say anything.

"We do need to make changes," James said. Remus rolled his eyes, tho he smiled, "Plan better." James turned to Sirius, "This is a bigger responsibility than we first thought."

Sirius nodded in agreement. They were solemn. Remus was relieved that his friend weren't the dumb fucks he thought they were a moment ago.

"Thank you James."

James nodded once, then climbed into his bed. He pulled his curtain around him, then fell asleep. The sun still shining through the windows didn't have an effect on his exhaustion.

At four the next morning he awoke. At first, he was confused about why. He then he remembered he fell asleep so early the previous day, and had just gotten about 12 hours of sleep. He got out of bed and grabbed a book from his end table and went to the common room.

James planned on sitting in his favorite seat by the dying fire. However, it was already taken. By a sleeping Lily Evans. He thought she couldn't be comfortable sleeping in that position. Her head lolled to the side (that would hurt tomorrow) and her feet tucked under herself (must cut off all circulation). James also had the thought that she looked extra beautiful sleeping by the fire light.

"Psst." James said, trying to wake her. He poked her with the corner of his book, "Evans."

She woke with a start. She looked at him.

"Am I late for class?" She asked.

James laughed, "No, it's only four. Why are you down here?"

James sat in the chair beside her. She sat up in the seat and pushed her hair back from her face. Her hand rubbed the back of her neck, already bothering her. He watched her, waiting for her answer.

"I haven't been sleeping well," Her voice was hoarse.

"So you sleep down here?"

Lily rolled her eyes and James smiled. He wanted to make her roll her eyes liked that for the rest of his life.

"I have a lot on my mind right now."

He waited for her to say more, but she didn't seem like she was going to.

"Is it your mum?"

Lily didn't answer. Instead, she stood up and turned toward her dorm. She took three steps when James said —

"Let me know if you want to talk about it."

She ignored him and continued to her dorm. James sat back in the chair. He opened his book, then realized this chair wasn't as comfortable as the one Lily had earlier occupied. He switched to the other chair, and began to read. Although he wanted to, he couldn't pay attention to the words on the page. Instead, his head continued to wander to the girl who had sat in the chair before him and her mother. His heart ached the more he thought about it. His knee ached as well, but he didn't think they had anything to do with each other.

James found himself pulling out a piece of parchment and a quill, left on a table by somebody. He wrote a letter to Mrs. Evans, telling her all about how much he admired Lily. He wrote about how he thought she raised a great daughter. He wrote about how he hoped, one day, he'd be able to meet Mrs. Evans.


	7. Chapter 7: Emotions

A/N: don't even read this srsly

 **Chapter 7: Emotion**

Lily lay in her bed for what had to have been at least an hour. She was unable to fall asleep, which is why she had been in the common room in the first place. Watching the fire relaxed her. But now, laying in the darkness, things were different. Her thoughts ran in circles.

 _I don't know what I did to make Petunia hate me. I wish Potter would leave me alone, or at least comb his hair once in a while. Why is Severus such a dick? If James hadn't bullied him he never would have called me that. If I hadn't been friends with James, he wouldn't have called me that. Everybody I care about turns against me. Petunia… Serverus…_

She didn't realize she was crying until she felt her mattress shift under the weight of a second person. It was Dorcas.

"Lily, what's going on?" She asked, quiet.

Lily hiccuped, afraid to wake Marlene. Dorcas ran her hand through Lily's hair. Her touch was gentle and soothing.

"My mother was hospitalized again," Lily whispered.

Dorcas lowered herself so they were face to face.

"Severus was bothering me after the Slug Club meeting, I pretended he didn't exist. He's so annoying, I wish he could do the same. Thank god for Black, he rescued me. Never thought I'd say that…" Lily laughed a little. She wiped her eyes. Dorcas grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I'm behind in transfiguration. And potions. I barely finished the History of Magic essay on time. I had to ask Slughorn for a deadline extension!"

Lily felt the mattress shift under weight again. Marlene had joined them, her hand rubbing circle's on Lily's back.

"There are so many articles about muggles being murdered," Lily continued. She was at a normal volume now that she didn't have to worry about waking Marlene,"It scares me. Are we going to be okay? Is my family going to be okay?"

The sun was starting to rise and Lily was starting to feel tired.

"I was talking to McGonagall," Marlene said, "About the muggle deaths. She said Dumbledore isn't going to just sit back and watch the ministry ignore it."

The girls were quiet for a moment, thinking about what that could mean. Was Dumbledore going to take the position of minister of magic? Was he going to leave Hogwarts? Lily didn't like the thought of that.

"What does that mean?" Dorcas asked the question they were all thinking.

"McGonagall said we'd find out after graduation."

"But we aren't even seventh years!"

"Dorcas, you aren't this dumb," Marlene said, a little irritated. "Ever since first year, we were told that Hogwarts has never seen a house that was as close as we are. Out of all the students that have passed through Hogwarts, our year is different. We're not only talented, but we like each other. We care about each other. We protect each other. Whatever Dumbledore is planning, He's going to ask us all to join in on it. And we're all going to say yes."

That was the end of the conversation. Lily didn't feel as though she had the energy to talk about it. But if she had, she would agree with Marlene.

Throughout the week, Dorcas helped Lily plan to so that she'd have time to catch up on her homework. It took a little extra effort for her to remain on top of new assignments. But it worked. They planned a big spa night on Friday as a reward. Marlene was looking forward to it after an accident at quidditch practice. It was nothing detrimental, but she had fallen off, and it left her sore for a few days.

Friday night came, and Lily found herself with her face covered with a beauty potion. Marlene had ordered it from her Witch Weekly magazine. Dorcas was snacking on licorice wands, flipping through a horoscope book. Marlene was reading the directions on a color changing charm that was specific for hair. There was a quiet knock on the door, and Lily assumed it was a homesick first year, so she opened it with a smile. However, it was professor McGonagall.

"May I come in?" The professor asked.

Lily nodded and opened the door wide enough for McGonagall to enter. McGonagall looked at the three girls and conjured a chair for her to sit in. Dorcas offered her a licorice wand, but she declined politely with a small shake of her head. Dorcas was the one who said what they were all thinking.

"Professor, it's always a pleasure, but what are you doing in our dorm? Did you hear about our spa nights? They're legendary!"

"Last year we made over Mary MacDonald, everybody was talking about it for weeks," Marlene offered.

"It was iconic!" Dorcas agreed, smiling.

"I would not like a make-over," Professor McGonagall said, "I come bearing bad news."

Lily's heart sank. She looked to the other girls. She sent a prayer up to every entity she could think of. She asked for her family to be safe, for the marauders to be safe, for the professors to be safe...

"Ms. Meadowes," McGonagall addressed Dorcas.

Lily only felt a little guilty for the feeling of relief as she thanked her lucky stars that her family was off the list of endangerment.

"Your brother was cornered. He put up one hell of a fight, but it was three against one. He didn't make it."

Lily felt herself overcome with emotion. She let out the most disgusting cry she had every heard from herself. Dorcas was still. She didn't move. Lily used every ounce of her willpower to compose herself. _For Dorcas_ she told herself.

"Who did it?" Dorcas asked.

"You-Know-Who himself made an appearance, and we think…"

"I want to fight." Dorcas said firmly. She was determined.

"We all do," Marlene told McGonagall.

Lily nodded. She wiped her tears. She felt useless. She wanted to do something. Anything.

"For now," McGonagall advised, "Focus on school. Focus on each other. Finish strong because we're stronger together."

McGonagall left the room. Lily looked at the chair, their newest piece of furniture. She was just thinking that it would make a great cloak rack when she heard wailing from Dorcas. She looked over to see Marlene rushing to her side.

"Let it out," Marlene said, "Let it all out."

"He's gone!" Dorcas shrieked, "It hurts."

Lily walked over to Dorcas's other side and took her hand. The girls cried together for hours, until Dorcas tired herself out. She lay between Marlene and Lily, her breathing finally steady.

"It's personal now, isn't it?" Marlene asked.

If Lily was being honest, it was always personal. You-Know-Who's rampage against muggle borns wasn't something she ever ignored. From the moment Lily first heard about it (Second year, she had been reading the daily prophet with Sirius. She asked him about an article. He told her all about everything. She didn't talk to him for two weeks. Severus confirmed everything Sirius had told her.) Lily had wanted to do something to stop it. She didn't tell all of this to Marlene, though.

"Yes," She is all told Marlene.


End file.
